


Wedding?  What Wedding?

by Aria_Lerendeair



Series: Aria's SH Bingo Fics 2019-2020 [1]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types, The Shadowhunter Chronicles - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Alec makes a different choice, Confessions, Domestic Shadowhunters, Love Confessions, Lydia Deserved Better, M/M, Magnus goes to crash the wedding late, Magnus is pining, Pining, no actual wedding, wedding angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-18
Updated: 2019-11-18
Packaged: 2021-02-08 06:29:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21471562
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aria_Lerendeair/pseuds/Aria_Lerendeair
Summary: Magnus is going to crash the wedding, he is - but he's running late, and now he's racing the clock to try to get there.  However, when he arrives, the wedding appears to be over and done with.  Heartbroken, Magnus is about to return home when he comes across Lydia, who lets him know the wedding...never happened.
Relationships: Almost Alec Lightwood/Lydia Branwell, Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood
Series: Aria's SH Bingo Fics 2019-2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1595839
Comments: 38
Kudos: 483
Collections: SHBingo





	Wedding?  What Wedding?

**Author's Note:**

> Filling my "Free Space" on my bingo square. Because apparently I'm gonna start in the middle and work my way out...

Magnus was _late_. 

After deliberating, debating and making the impossible decision to go interrupt the wedding, to try again, even though he'd told Alexander that he wouldn't, Magnus had found himself later than intended, because if he was going to embarrass himself in front of the Clave he was going to look his absolute best while doing it. Except now, it was very possible that he was going to miss the _wedding_, because he hadn't noticed the time going by. 

Magnus portalled into the Institute, near the church and felt his heart clench when he didn't hear any crowds inside the room. He slammed the doors open, striding into the room, looking to the altar. 

He froze. 

It was empty. He looked around wildly. They hadn't changed the wedding venue, Nephilim were creatures of habit, and that meant that he'd been even later than he realized. His heart hammered painfully in his chest and he looked around the room. There was no sign of anyone, it looked like the wedding had been over for hours already. 

Had Alec moved up the time of the wedding, afraid that he might try to interrupt? But Isabelle had been the one to text him and tell him when the wedding early yesterday, had she lied to him? Magnus swallowed and took in the sight around him for another moment before he summoned a portal. There was no point in staying if he hadn't, if they'd already... 

Magnus shook his head against the image of Alec and Lydia standing together, hand in hand. He didn't need to torture himself with this. He _didn't_. It was over and done with and he hadn't been enough to stop things. He should have known better, after all._ Shadowhunters. _

"Magnus?" 

Magnus froze and clenched his eyes shut, telling himself that he didn't need to turn around to look at Lydia, at the happy smile that would be on her face on her wedding day. He didn't need that. But he was not going to be rude to the Head of the Institute. He was better than that. He forced himself to turn around and blinked at the sight of Lydia in one of her usual suits and not a wedding gown. 

"What are you doing here?" Lydia asked, looking at him and then back to the altar. 

"I..." Magnus snapped his mouth shut and considered. Telling Lydia that he had come rushing in to interrupt her wedding with Alexander to run off with her groom was a tad rude. 

Lydia smiled, raising both of her eyebrows. "He's out on patrol. He left about an hour ago." 

Magnus blinked again and stared at her, narrowing his eyes. Both of her hands lacked any sort of ring, and he didn't see a rune on her wrist. What had happened? "Patrol? Doesn't seem like the right way to spend one's wedding day, even for the Nephilim." 

"If there had been a wedding day, perhaps you'd be right," Lydia said, continuing to look at him. She softened and relaxed her posture. "Alec called off the wedding late last night." 

Magnus' eyes slammed wide in shock. "He, he..." 

Lydia nodded. "He did. His mother is, obviously, furious, and I believe many of the Clave officials were confused as to why we'd both suddenly decided otherwise." 

"You...both..." Magnus had rarely felt so off-kilter in a conversation, but his head was swimming with the implications. Alexander had called off his wedding. Alec wasn't married and wasn't going to be getting married in the immediate future. 

"Well," Lydia said, a small smirk curling around her lips. "He explained, I agreed. We both wanted that marriage for reasons that we haven't exactly hidden. So we found another solution." 

"Another solution?" Magnus asked. He didn't even know what Lydia had wanted out of the wedding. Had she wanted something other than Alexander himself?

Lydia nodded and the sound of her name being called behind her made her turn. "I do believe it's something that Alec can tell you properly. He'll be back around ten tonight, after patrol. Should I tell him you stopped by?" 

Magnus didn't know how to answer that. Did he want Alexander to know that he'd come to interrupt his wedding? He stared back at Lydia and forced himself to nod. "I, yes. Could you tell him to, to..." he floundered and cursed himself for it. Asking Lydia to deliver a message when he could do it perfectly well was ridiculous. He was more than four hundred years old, he could call Alexander himself. 

"Could you let him know that I'll talk to him soon?" 

Lydia chuckled and nodded, heading towards the door. "I will, Magnus. Don't make him wait too long?" 

Magnus didn't have time to respond before Lydia was turning the corner and heading back into the Institute. His portal was still open beside him and Magnus stepped through it, sagging in relief as he closed it. Alexander wasn't married. Alec wasn't married and he hadn't been too late. Now he just had to find the courage to talk to him. Again. 

~!~

The remainder of the afternoon and evening was spent pacing around his loft, his skin itching with the desire to do something, anything, but his magic was borderline sparking out of control with the tension in his shoulders and his heart. He needed to talk to Alexander, and for all that he had the shadowhunter's number, using it now, talking on the phone, or texting, when he just needed the why, he needed to _hear_ why Alec had called off his wedding, any other means wasn't acceptable. 

He watched the sun set over Brooklyn and told himself that he was not going to watch the clock. Magnus was not going to check every minute of every hour before Alec was expected to be back at the Institute. He was not going to. Even though he could feel the ticking of the clock inside his lair, the loud one that he complained about that Ragnor had bought him as a homecoming present when he moved to New York. 

The sound of it chiming the top of the hour had his eyes flying to it. An hour. An hour before Alexander would be back at the Institute, and then it would take time for Lydia to deliver his message, and then, then he could finally, _finally_ figure out some way for- 

His doorbell rang. 

Magnus blinked, startled out of his thoughts and stared at his door. It rang again, more insistently this time. A quick scry of his door showed Alexander standing on the other side and his heart jumped into his throat. He walked towards the door and waved it open, standing in the middle of the loft, devouring the sight of Alec as he stepped in, their eyes meeting. 

Alec, Alec looked like he'd run here. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes were bright and shining, and at least two of his runes were active from what Magnus could see. Magnus told himself to stop being ridiculous, because Alec wasn't even supposed to be back from patrol yet, and here he was, standing in the middle of his loft. He likely needed help with something. 

Magnus shook himself and ordered himself to focus, his eyes rising to Alexander's again. He couldn't help his heart turning over at the brief smile on Alec's face, as he stepped into the loft, closing the door behind him. 

"Alexander. Are you all right?" Magnus looked him up and down. Ichor stained his clothes. Alec had been in a fight tonight, maybe even more than one, but he didn't look to be injured, at least that nothing beyond an Iratze could fix. 

"I didn't get married today," Alec blurted. 

Magnus froze, staring at Alec in shock, the words hanging between them. "Congratulations?" he offered. 

Alec laughed, shaking his head, striding towards the drink cart, grabbing one of the amber bottles, pouring himself a small splash of it before knocking it back, willing his hands to stop shaking. "That's one way to put it, I suppose." 

"Alexander," Magnus said, repeating his name a little softer. "What's going on? You are, obviously, more than welcome to help yourself to a drink, but-" 

"I got injured on patrol yesterday," Alec interrupted, striding across the loft, pacing impatiently, unable to look at Magnus. 

Magnus felt his heart jump into his throat and he froze again, watching Alec pace. "Are you-" 

"I'm fine," Alec said, waving his hand. He stopped and gave Magnus a look. "Sorry, I keep interrupting you, but I need to say this or I'm never going to get it out and if I don't, I'm going to regret it and..." he took a deep breath. "Let me just...please?" 

Magnus nodded, his heart jumping into his own throat as he stared at Alec and the way he continued to pace across the loft, his whole body tense and snapping with tension. 

"I got injured, yesterday. It was more than an iratze could fix, and everyone was getting angry with me for daring to get injured before my wedding," Alec continued, pacing harder, faster, moving in a circle. 

Magnus couldn't look away, it was like a caged panther was striding across his living room. 

"It didn't take long to fix, and I was perfectly fine afterward, but everyone kept scolding me and telling me it had been so selfish to go out on patrol and I should have been helping to set up for the wedding and..." 

Alec blew out a hard breath, his hands shaking as he stopped in the middle of the loft. "And I snapped," he whispered. 

Magnus forced himself to make a curious noise, wanting to know exactly what that meant. 

"I was there, sitting in an infirmary bed, my mother, Jace, my father, Izzy, Hodge, Lydia, even fucking Raj, all of them there, all of them talking over each other and all of them at me and I couldn't do it anymore, I couldn't _take_ it anymore, Magnus." 

"What happened?" Magnus asked, taking a cautious step towards Alexander. He was still shaking, but it was less so, and his jaw was set and resolute. Whatever had happened, Alec wouldn't be going back on it. He'd committed to it, now and wasn't going to run away from it. Magnus wanted to kiss him. 

"I shouted," Alec started, his voice quiet. "I asked if they cared more about the wedding than the fact that I had claws and poisonous spines sticking out of my side." 

Magnus' eyes went wide. "You..." 

Alec laughed, hanging his head. "I wish you'd been there, Magnus. You've never seen a group of people so horrified. But all of them, all of them were looking at me, and once I'd said it, it was like..." He lifted his head and he met Magnus' eyes again, offering a rueful smile. 

"It was like everything you'd told me, about how this wasn't for me, how I deserved better, I deserved to be able to fall in love, that I didn't have to live a lie...all of it just hit me at once," he breathed out. Alec looked to the floor and took a deep breath and stepped closer to Magnus. 

"I," Alec paused, swallowing hard. "I called off the wedding. Right then and there. I think Lydia was the only one who wasn't surprised. I said that when, _if_, I ever got married, I was at least going to be considered a part of it." 

Magnus' breath caught and he stared at Alec with wide eyes. He'd called off the wedding. Alexander had called off the wedding, hadn't gone through with it. 

"And," Alec said, his gaze turning sheepish. "I said that Lydia and I were going to run the Institute together as _partners_, but not as husband and wife, because, because we do make a good team," he added, his voice turning desperate. "Not, not because I still want to marry her, but because we do make a great team, and..." 

"You do make a good team," Magnus agreed, his head spinning as he continued to stare at Alexander. His heart was pounding with the implications. Alec had called off the wedding because he wanted more. That didn't mean that Alec wanted him, but at the very least he hadn't condemned himself to a lie. 

"Lydia..." Alec swallowed, taking another step closer to Magnus, looking at him. "Lydia said you came to the Institute today." 

Magnus forced himself to focus on Alec again, at the nervousness that seemed to be hanging off every inch of him. "I did," he said, his voice soft. He felt vulnerable, he was always so vulnerable when he was around Alexander. 

"You," Alec took a deep breath. "You came to interrupt my wedding, didn't you? To, to try to...stop me?" 

"I did," Magnus whispered, clenching his hands into fists to stop them from shaking. Alec was closer still and his eyes were still shining and hadn't looked away from his and Magnus' heart was in his throat and pounding loudly enough that it echoed in the space of his loft. 

Alec exhaled shakily and smiled, quick and tentative. "Do you know something else I thought about when I got injured last night?" 

"What?" Magnus asked, staring up at Alec, unable to look away from him. He was beautiful, Alexander was so damn beautiful, he never wanted to stop staring at him. 

"I thought about the fact that you would have cared. That you would have worried, and maybe even, fussed over me, a bit," Alec said, his ears turning red. 

Magnus couldn't help the incredulous laugh that escaped him. "I don't _fuss_." Except Alec was right, he absolutely would have. 

"Well," Alec said, biting down on his lower lip. "I thought you might have. You, you at least would have cared that I was injured." 

"Of course I would have," Magnus agreed, reaching out to touch Alec's arm, reigning in the magic that wanted to surge through his fingertips to make sure, to make absolutely sure that Alec _was_ all right. "And maybe I would have fussed, just a little." 

Alec smiled, bright and wide. "Because you _care_," he said. 

Magnus nodded, swallowing hard. "Because I care," he agreed. Alec was still smiling at him, his eyes bright and wide and so sunny. Magnus wanted to pull him into a kiss, but now they seemed frozen, staring at each other, unable to take that last, that final step forward. Where did they go from here, if anywhere? Why was Alec here? 

"You know," Alec said, looking down at Magnus' hand, and then back to the warlock. "I, I didn't really have a plan for coming here. To, to see you." 

Magnus fought down a laugh and failed, snickering a little as he stared up at Alec. "I did guess as much." 

"So," Alec added, licking his lips. "I, I just, I had to be here. When Lydia told me that you were at the Institute today, that you'd, you'd come after what you _said_ yesterday..." 

Magnus flicked his eyes away from Alec's, taking a slow, shuddering deep breath. He'd exposed himself too much, had pushed too hard, had let too much of himself escape and now Alec knew, of course he knew, but if he wasn't running away, what was this, and how could he, they, move forward? 

"Alexander..." 

"Angels above I love how you say my name," Alec blurted. 

Magnus' eyes flew wide open and they snapped back to Alec, and the rapidly darkening color on his cheeks. "You..." 

"Fuck," Alec muttered, clenching his eyes shut for a moment before he opened them again. He straightened his shoulders and looked Magnus straight in the eyes. "I'm sorry, Magnus." 

Magnus blinked, not sure what Alec was apologizing for this time. "What are you apologizing for?" 

"Well," Alec forced himself to smile and sighed. "There's a long list. First on the list is for hurting you and throwing in your face that you didn't know how I felt. You did, and you tried to tell me every way you could. Next on the list would be for dismissing you when all you did was try to help." 

Magnus stared at Alec and watched him lick his lips again, his eyes chasing the quick image of that pink tongue before he snapped his attention back to Alexander, who was still going on about things he needed to apologize for. "Alexander?" 

"I, yes?" Alec asked, snapping his mouth shut, realizing that he had been babbling. Again. By the angel, he was always an absolute idiot around Magnus. 

"Why are you here?" Magnus asked, staring at him. 

Alec froze and rapidly tracked over their conversation and realized that he hadn't actually said... "Fuck," he swore, staring at the ceiling. "Izzy is never going to let me live this down. I even practiced." 

Magnus raised both of his eyebrows and watched Alec groan under his breath. "You practiced? What, precisely, Alexander, did you practice with your sister?" 

"This," Alec grumbled, reaching out to take both of Magnus' hands in his, lifting them up a bit with a gentle squeeze before he met Magnus' eyes again. "I am sorry that I pushed you away. You were right. I do feel...like you feel. And...and I want to have that drink. With you." 

Magnus' eyes widened and he stared at Alec. His heart was pounding all over again and he looked down at their hands and then back up to where Alec appeared to be waiting for a response from him. Magnus let a small, shuddery exhale leave him and it was like the tension of the last few weeks, since Alec had told him he was getting married, were gone. He dropped his hands and barely caught sight of the fear and disappointment before he was pressing in closer to Alec, tucking his face against Alec’s neck, and his arms around Alec’s waist. It took only an instant for strong arms to be wrapped around his shoulders, holding him close and Magnus had to smile when he felt Alec’s face pressing against his hair. 

“I’d love that,” Magnus whispered, closing his eyes as he took another slow, shuddery breath. “The drink,” he clarified when he heard Alec make a quiet noise “But I’d like to stay here for a few minutes even more.” 

“I can do that,” Alec whispered, holding on tightly to Magnus, closing his eyes, the feeling of rightness settling over him again as they clung to each other. “I can do that.” 

Magnus didn't know how long he let himself stay there, cocooned in Alexander's arms, but there was one more thing he wanted. He tugged himself back, glad when Alec lifted his head and looked at him curiously. "We're going to curl up on the couch and watch a movie in a moment," he explained, watching Alec smile and nod. 

"Is everything okay?" Alec asked, rubbing his hand up Magnus' back. 

"Of course," Magnus said, his eyes dropping to Alec's lips and wondered... Would it be too much to... 

"Magnus?" Alec whispered. Magnus was staring at him and his eyes were dark in a way that made him want to shiver. 

Magnus knew it was probably too much, too soon, but he just wanted, needed to make sure this wasn't a figment of his excellent imagination and he brought his eyes up to meet Alec's again. "Alexander?" 

Alec frowned, wondering what had put that particular expression on Magnus' face. He looked almost..._sad_. "Magnus what's wrong?" 

"Nothing, nothing is wrong," Magnus said, shaking himself a little. He was worrying Alec. He summoned some of his confidence and wrapped his arms around Alec's shoulders, stepping in a little closer to him. "But I'd like to kiss you now, if I may." 

Alec exhaled in relief, unable to keep from grinning. "I'd love that. Had to stop myself from kissing you when I first walked in." 

Relief, fierce and fiery, shot through him, coupled with the grin of excitement on Alexander's face, Magnus didn't bother waiting one second longer. He tangled his fingers into Alec's hair and tugged him down the last few inches to meet his lips. Alec was hesitant for only a matter of seconds, but when Magnus didn't pull back from the kiss, only exhaled against his lips, Alec dove back in again and Magnus was swept away as Alec pulled him in and kissed him harder, deeper and with so much passion his heart could barely stand the assault. 

It was only when they parted for air and Magnus found them both smiling goofily that he realized this was where they'd ended up. He got to have this. He got to _keep_ this. And based on how tightly Alec was holding his hand as they curled up on the couch together, he felt the same way. 

~!~

Magnus strolled into the Institute through the portal, coffees held in the drink carrier, and a pastry bag held in his hand, waltzing towards Ops. 

Alec looked up and grinned at the sight of Magnus, grabbing the coffee he knew was his before stealing a quick kiss. “You didn’t have to bring us coffee.” 

“If I have to be here this early in the morning, I am not dealing with grumpy shadowhunters,” Magnus said, pulling out an apple ugly and offering it to Alexander with a grin, then another coffee. “Go bring this to your work wife.” 

Alec laughed and juggled both of the cups. “You know she hates it when you call her that!” 

“She called me in for an 8am meeting on a Friday, Alexander, I can call her-” 

“Goddess divine, because I also managed to give your boyfriend the rest of the weekend off,” Lydia cut in, taking her coffee from Alec with a smile and a quick toast to Magnus. 

Magnus blinked and smiled, turning to her with a flourish, offering her the avocado and egg breakfast sandwich. “You are my favorite behind Alexander, Lydia.” 

Izzy strode up to the table, grabbing the second to last coffee and taking a sip of it. “Black like my soul. Thank you, Magnus.” 

Magnus snorted and rolled his eyes, turning to the censor map in front of them as Alec and Izzy started to bicker between themselves and Lydia stepped away to sign a report being offered from a young shadowhunter. 

“Magnus!” Clary called, hurrying over to the table, snagging the last coffee, sticking her tongue out at Jace when he frowned at the empty container. “Are you coming with us?” 

“It looks like it, biscuit,” Magnus said, his eyes returning to Lydia as she rejoined the group. 

“What, no coffee for me?” Jace asked. 

Magnus raised both of his eyebrows. “Last time, I recall you mocking us all for our pretentious coffees, Chase.” 

Jace scowled and crossed his arms over his chest. 

Magnus caught the smile from Alec teasing across his lips and held his hand out with a snap, a coffee, black with two sugars, out to Jace. “Don’t say I didn’t ever do anything for you.” 

“Now, if everyone is done begging for coffee from Magnus, we can get on to the briefing,” Lydia said, raising her eyebrows. She turned to Alec and gestured for him to step forward. “Alec, here, go ahead.” 

Magnus barely paid attention to the briefing, sipping his own coffee that he snapped up a moment later. His eyes darted between the group of them and he smiled into his cup. So much could change in six months. 

“Magnus?” 

Magnus blinked back into focus and looked up at Alexander, smiling again. “Yes, is everything all right?” 

Alec nodded and looked at the empty table. “Yeah, everyone went off to finish getting prepped. You looked...far away. Are you all right?” 

Magnus nodded back at him. “Very all right, Alexander. I was just lost in thought.” 

“Don’t get too lost,” Alec teased, leaning down to kiss him again. The soft exhale against his lips never failed to make his heart pound, especially standing in the middle of the Institute. “Or I’ll have to come find you again.” 

“You’re the only one I want to find me,” Magnus whispered, looking up at Alec as he pulled back, his lips still tingling from the gentle touch. 

Alec smiled again, reaching up to cup Magnus’ cheek, pulling him in to press their foreheads together. “Ready to get good and lost this weekend?” 

“Looking forward to it, my darling, is an understatement.” 

**Author's Note:**

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